BENTLEY SPOTTING: August 2013

Behind the wheel of Wraith

Here is the latest Rolls-Royce ad.

Or maybe promotional video or whatever.

I do like it!

From The Classifieds

This week's From The Classifieds features a Bentley Brooklands Coupe currently on sale in Dubai.

One of only 550 examples, it's a 2010 model, gulf specification car, finished in an unusual metallic gold over white colour scheme with gold coachlines…

With cream and tan leather interior…

It's also specified with a vaned, rather than more normal wire mesh grille.

With only 9,000 kms from new it is being offered at US $230,000...

I quite like it!

(Posted by Andy)

ARN46E

Cherised registrations, vanity plates, private registrations...

In the UK they divide opinions. Some people love them, some people loathe them.

But there is no doubting that they are big business.

The owner of the registration "F1" is reported to have recently turned down an offer of GBP 6 million for it:

http://www.motoring.co.uk/car-news/registration-plate-f1-worth-pound-6-million_57297

I think the private plate on this 2002 Bentley Arnage T quite suits it:

It's as close as you can get to "Arnage" with the UK registration format.

(Posted by Andy)

'Til the Cows Come Home

Andy's (not the Bentleyspotting Andy) Corniche DHC has made the cattle nervous..

Nugmeg and magnolia. Hmmmm...

Probably two of those cows' names.

At today's RROC Upper Canada event.

Nice colour combo. Perfect match to the cows.

And one of my favourite Rolls-Royce colours.

(Posted by David Irvine)

RRocket Man

Well, today at our Upper Canada RROC meet we got to meet none other than Canada's astronaut Chris Hadfield.

Down on the farm....

Ladies and gentlemen, on the left we have tractors. And on the right...

Wow! Crewe, Derby and Springfield products galore:

Opposite two tones, these two.

Chris even sang for us.

How many people can tell you they heard an astronaut sing live?

He actually can sing...

An honour to meet him. We all met him..

A great club event indeed.

The End:

(Posted by David Irvine)

A Bentleyspotter Spotted

Well, we do drive interesting cars, so it has to happen.

I was spotted by an Exoticspotter.com contributor earlier on this month in Yorkville in Toronto. I actually recall him taking the shot but thought nothing of it until this link was discovered. There have been a lot of car spotters this summer in the area.

http://www.exoticspotter.com/rolls-royce-silver-shadow-toronto-canada-136238

Funny how that really expensive Lamborghini Murcielago Spyder is merely a backdrop.

I have since joined the site myself.

Thanks for the comments John.

Incidentally, the Old Girl is currently in the workshop having a brake fluid leak addressed. Should be back on the road next week. Old cars...Grrrr!

She didn't 'Fail To Proceed'. She 'Failed To Retreat' - with smoke....

RR363 fluid and exhausts don't like each other.

(Posted by David Irvine)

The Who

Or should it be "The What?"…

That's right…this is a Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow II Shooting Brake…

One originally commissioned by the late John Entwhistle of the legendary British rock band "The Who" to transport his Irish Wolfhounds around his country estate.

Chassis #SRH0040422 was bought from John Entwhistle's wife following his death, and has since been kept in Perthshire, Scotland being mainly used for grouse shooting trips.

It's now being offered by Bonhams at their upcoming auction of Collectors' Motor Cars at the National Motor Museum, Beaulieu on 7^th September.

The coachbuilder is unknown, but suspected to be FLM Panelcraft, founded in the early 1950s by former staff of James Young, Corsica and Alpe & Saunders.

Let's take a closer look…

The brown paint is very late seventies, but I quite like it.

Unlike some other aftermarket shooting brake conversions this one looks"right"….the coachbuilder has maintained the slope of the roof and incorporated the large three quarter window so that it flows with the lines.

And unusually for a Shooting Brake conversion, it doesn't have an everflex roof.

For me, the lack of an everflex roof and the fitting of roof rails only further improves the overall appearance.

I normally dislike gold plated mascots, door handles, badges etc.

This car has them, and gold plated side rails, and headlight surrounds too!

But the gold actually seems to match the overall colour scheme.

The interior has been updated with later seats and headrests in cream leather.

And it has been fitted with a rather nice bar in the back!

Its covered around 115,500 miles and is being offered with restoration invoices, current MOT and road tax.

The guide is GBP 14-19,000, but I think it could fetch more.

What's nice is that Flickr user goldscotland1971 has previously seen it out and about.

Here are his pics…

And this isn't the first Silver Shadow II Shooting Brake to have been offered at auction.

In October 2009, H&H Sales offered a 1978 Silver Shadow II Estate (#SRH33570) at its auction of Fine Collectors' Vehicles at the Haynes International Museum.

Finished in seychelles blue with a black everflex roof and dark blue leather upholstery, the catalogue describes the conversion having been commissioned by the 9th Earl of Carrick (Brian Stuart Theobald Somerset Caher Butler: http://www.thepeerage.com/p1076.htm) a cousin of Her Majesty The Queen and Chairman of Ralli Bros Ltd, Merchant Bank.

A later catalogue amendment advised that The Chelsea Workshop had converted #SRH33570 into a shooting brake when it was approximately ten years old and not when new as previously thought.

It was offered as being in generally good condition with "some service history", current MOT certificate and 102,680 recorded miles.

Guided at GBP 18-20,000, it fetched GBP 14,300 including commission.

Interestingly, #SRH33570 had been offered at Bonham's Collectors' Motor Cars and Automobilia, RAF Museum, Hendon, London in April 2009, just 6 months earlier.

Bonhams catalogue describes it as being presented in metallic blue with a black everflex roof, dark blue leather and with blue carpets and over-rugs to front and rear.

Service invoices documented that during that summer of 2008 it had been driven from Lands End to John O'Groats and back (the full length of the UK , twice) and had averaged an impressive 22mpg for the trip.

The recorded mileage at the time of cataloguing was 26,899 miles, but a new speedometer had been fitted at 70,288 miles, bringing the total to 97,187 miles.

Against a GBP 20-25,000 guide, it sold for GBP 15,525 including premium.

#SRH33570 has also been photographed in use.

Here in London…

And in Paris....

Back in May 2003 Bonhams also offered a 1980 Silver Shadow II Shooting Brake (#SRH0041210) at the The Edwin C. Jameson Jr. Collection of Motor Cars, Exceptionally Fine Locomotives and Traction Engines, Live Steam and Automobilia Part III at the National Motor Museum, Beaulieu.

It is catalogued as being by FLM Panelcraft and finished in green with matching everflex roof and leather interior and fitted with a sunroof.

Documentation included the owners handbook and three expired MOT certificates covering the period September 1999 to November 2002, with the earliest recording 2,024 miles on the odometer.

Also included in the file was a service invoice from Straight Eight, dated October 1998, detailing works including the fitting of a new fuel pump.